| Melchizadek - Who, What, Where, When, Why |
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The Bible is full of people - how many named characters?
Hundreds? Thousands?
How many with significant roles?
How many with "lines" with speaking parts?
Some are major characters, some are minor.
Some are good, some bad, most a mix of the two.
Some are Jews, some are Gentiles
Some are men and some are women.
Today we're going to be looking at a very mysterious and strange character called "Melchizedek".
He appears out of the blue in Genesis - the first book of the Bible - chapter 14. and then he disappears again. That's the only time we meet him, the only time he does or says anything
He's mentioned again in the Psalms right in the middle of the Bible and then he's mentioned again in the letter to the Hebrews near the end.
But both of these two - the Psalms and Hebrews - are reminders or reflections on who Melchizedek is what he does.
These two other mentions both go back over Melchizedek's mysterious appearance and disappearance in Gen 14.
Genesis is a book with some odd characters in and Melchizedek isamong the oddest. He is a priest and a king but he has no beginning and no end, no parents.
Any Dr. Who fans?
Maybe he's a bit like a Time Lord, who can move through time and space. Certainly he doesn't seem to be a normal mortal human being.
He appears like the sort of mysterious stranger that Clint Eastwood often plays in Westerns.
It's all a bit weird.
Here's the story in Genesis 14 in a nutshell:
Abraham had to rescue his nephew who had been kidnapped and taken hostage. So he gets some men together and they go and fight the kidnappers.
Abraham wins and gets his nephew back but also gets a whole lot of plunder as well. So Abraham went from not looking for a fight, to having to fight to get his nephew back and then finding that he'd got a whole lot more as well - he'd accidentally, as it were, captured the kidnappers' loot. Things went from normal, to very bad to very good - a real emotional rollercoaster. That's when this Melchizedek appears on the scene.
He's described in pretty impressive terms - he's a priest and a King.
I wonder what he wore - maybe amazing golden robes, who knows?
He comes out to meet Abraham and brings with him bread and wine. He then delivers the only lines he ever says in the Bible says:
"Blessed be Abram by God Most High, the Creator of heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High, who handed your enemies over to you."
Well, it could be worse!
Melchizedek, this mysterious and magnificent stranger, blesses Abraham and praises God.
Or all the things that mysterious strangers say this is far from the worst! If you're going to meet a mysterious stranger make sure they say the same or something very similar.
Then Abraham does something. He gives Melchizedek a tenth - 10 % - of the plunder. That's it - we never meet Melchizedek again, although we do hear about him twice more - once in the Psalms and once in the letter to Hebrews and so what?
This is a minor character who only makes one appearance in the text and even that is a bit weird. What can that possible teach us, how can that possibly help us? Well, Melchizedek is a very important figure in helping us to understand who and what Jesus is.
Melchizedek is a forerunner of Jesus, a prototype if you like.
There are other, more famous, forerunners - John the Baptist, the prophets, King David. But Melchizedek helps us to understand 7 things about Jesus.
We're going to have a look at those 7 things in a moment but first we'll just look at why he gets a mention at all in this letter to the Hebrews.
This letter to the Hebrews is probably written in reply or in response to a letter from the Hebrews - i.e. from some Jews.
They had lots of questions about Jesus and about how he fits in to the Old Testament.
They wanted to know how come Jesus can be a priest when he isn't descended from Aaron.
These Hebrews know that only Aaron's descendants can be and priests and Jesus isn't one of them - he comes from the wrong family, he has the wrong surname.
Well, says the writer of this letter to them, there were priests before Aaron and Melchizedek is one of them.
So it is possible to be a priest and not be descended from Aaron. Melchizedek is one; Jesus is another.
So Melchizedek is a forerunner of Jesus and helps to understand Jesus. There's 7 things about Jesus in particular that Melchizedek shows us clearly.
1. He is a priest of God.
A priest is someone who brings us to God and who brings God to us a middleman or broker. Jesus is the perfect and ultimate priest. Need God? Call Jesus. Are we being priests - are bringing God to people and bringing people to God?
2. He comes to meet us with bread and wine.
Christ comes to meet us where we are, as we are. He comes to refresh us and feed us, to live with us and in us. He comes with and in bread and wine.
3. He has eternal "indestructible" life (Hebrews 7:16)
Does death bother you? Your own or someone else's? Christ has eternal "indestructible" life and gives it to all who believe in him.
4. He is the King of Righteousness and of Peace.
Do we lack either of these? Christ can supply them, and the two go together - when we are righteous (right with God) then we have peace. But both of these are God's gift - they come from him; we can't buy or earn them. They are the gift of God in and through Jesus Christ.
5. He came blessing God and blessing Abraham [or insert name here]
Melchizedek said "May Abraham be blessed by God; and may God himself be blessed". Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love God 100% and to love others as much as we love ourselves. Are we being a blessing to God and to others?
6. He came out of the blue.
Christ came to earth, he is continually coming to his church and he will come again from heaven to judge the living and the dead and to make all things new. Are we ready? and are we on the look out for Christ coming in unexpected, unpredictable ways? How - or through whom - might Christ come to you this week? If God can speak through donkeys he can speak through a Muslim or an atheists or your mother-in-law. Be on the look-out and listen-out for God this week.
7. He receives a tithe (a tenth, 10%)
Abraham gave Melchizedek 10% of what he had. So much of this has been about what God gives us or does for us. This church is running a deficit and is spending its reserves. Are we being generous to God and to the church?
Let's recap - look at these 7 again. Pick three that God might be speaking to you. Remember them and do something about them this week. |
Amen |
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